‘Does she work for Canada or for China?’ Conservative MP’s attack on Dr. Theresa Tam draws no comment from Andrew Scheer

OTTAWA-Andrew Scheer is refusing to comment on a Conservative leadership candidate's suggestion that Canada's chief medical officer was "parroting" misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scheer was asked Thursday if Derek Sloan, a rookie Ontario MP running for the party's leadership, is still welcome in the Conservative caucus after an attack on chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam.

In a video posted to his social media accounts, Sloan accused Tam of promoting "misinformation" from the World Health Organization and the Chinese Communist Party about the coronavirus crisis.

In the video attacking Tam, Sloan asks, "Does she work for Canada or for China?" and calls for her to be fired.

Scheer said he will not comment on the positions taken by candidates vying to replace him as Conservative leader.

"I'll leave it to each leadership candidate to speak for themselves and explain their views," Scheer told reporters in Ottawa.

"I have said that this government needs to be held accountable for the decisions that were made. I don't believe we should allow this government to have a scapegoat, to pin the blame on anybody else. These were ministers that chose to ignore some advice and chose to listen to other advice."

A spokesperson for Sloan's leadership campaign could not immediately be reached for comment on Thursday morning.

Scheer and the Conservatives have been highly critical of the Liberal's response to the pandemic, accusing the government of being slow to act on travel restrictions and other measures aimed at slowing COVID-19's spread.

On Thursday, Scheer demanded that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau present a plan on reopening the economy. Scheer suggested that provinces developing their own plans to relax public health measures like social distancing and business closures risked a "patchwork" response across the country.

"Certain provinces have been able to flatten the curve and are starting to talk about when they may be able to slowly start revising health restrictions over the coming weeks and months," he said.

"This has raised concerns about a possible patchwork approach across the country. Other countries have released national frameworks, so why hasn't Canada?"

Alex Boutilier is an Ottawa-based reporter covering national politics. Follow him on Twitter: @alexboutilier